Been busy with packing and planning this weekend. The October national holiday is coming up in China and this year it's an extra big one. While the country is gearing up to celebrate its 60th anniversary of the People's Republic, me and my boyfriend are getting ready for a holiday escape to Malaysia. Even though it might not be the best season to visit Malaysia it’s going to be awesome to get away for a week and neither see nor hear a single firecracker. We’ll be spending a few days in Kuala Lumpur before heading off to Langkawi island. I’m quite excited, as I’ve never been to Malaysia before. Is there anything we shouldn’t miss out on in Kuala Lumpur? Seeing that I'm a bit of a food junkie, also let me know if there are any must-eat dishes. I've heard that Malaysian food is quite spicy but sweet... Anyways, feel free to share your recommendations.
19 comments:
What island do you mean? I recommend that you should go to Redang Island, it's wonderful
Johan -yeah I should have made that clear at the first place, I just edited the post. We r going to Langkawi island.
Langkawi is pretty touristy, but the nature is beautiful and there are lot of activities to choose from. The beaches are nice and clean as well. The food is yummy, quite a wide range of it. I'd recommend u to rent a scooter (very cheap!) and drive around the island. There is a beautiful waterfall (which you don't need to cross ;) you can just stand and admire..)
Enjoy your escape!
I came in from The Butler and Bagman, interested in China. Yeah! maybe I can start learning some decent and simple chinese recipe.
I can't imagine how they'll treat that anniversary. I wonder if we'll hear about it across the pond.
Make sure you take all the necessary shots and bring malaria pills.
maija -thanks for the tips! Can't wait to be surrounded by beautiful nature again, and watch stunning waterfalls that I don't need to cross (ehum!), hehe. Btw, did you do any horseback riding on the island. I read that could be quite good; jungle riding and beach riding...
lakeviewer -seeing that this blog is 90% about China I am sure u will do! :)
pilgrimchick -there are some huge fireworks planned for this one indeed.
Kanmuri -shots and malaria pills? Huh? A bit too late to take shots now seeing that we r leaving tomorrow. And malaria pills -really? I took some when I went to Indonesia some years ago but there were many people who didn't take and who were fine still. In thailand I skipped pills completely.. Is it really necessary to take pills for 10 days in malaysia?
We went to Malaysia on a whim a few weeks ago, and my favorite foods were Laksa, a noodle soup with loads of spices, and the white coffee from Old Town White Coffee (they have branches everywhere).
We did take malaria medication. At the time, I found some map which indicated the risk for different regions. We went to Borneo and the risk there was high. Around KL you certainly don't need it, but I don't know about Langkawi.
In Beijing we could not find malaria pills on that short notice, but in KL you can buy them (without prescription). They had both doxycycline (increases sensitivity to sunlight so maybe better not to take this if you get sunburn easily) and malarone (more expensive, but fewer side effects).
Both of them you can start a day before entering a malaria zone.
Enjoy Malaysia! As they say over there, "Malaysia is truly Asia", so finally you will get to see the real Asia, not the fake Asia we have in China :)
Hey anke, thanks for your tips!! I think we will take some malarone then, seeing that I am super sensitive to the sun already. Can't wait to enjoy some laksa! :)
But fake Asia in China?? whooot? naaaah, have u visited some non-city areas in China? Head to Yunnan or Hunan and aim for the country side, if that's not "real" Asia God knows what is.
Hi Jonna, I was kidding about China being fake Asia. I just think Malaysia's official tourism slogan is a bit presumptuous...
Anke -oh, geez, I should have realized that, seeing u put it as a quote and everything. Man, I can be slow at times.
We are going to Malaysia next cristmass and checked from Finland you don't need malaria medication in LK or Langkawi.
Don't forget to go to Palau Pangkor
Hi Jonna,
Greetings from Singapore!
I have been following your blog for about a month ago and it given me a great insight into China and really interesting information as well.
Thought i might add some more information for your trip to Malaysia
Langkawi is great but i don't know if it'd be the right season to visit. Having said that, i do not think it will be necessary to take pills and shots. Langkawi's is indeed safe and to a certain extent rather touristy but great
beach anyway.
KL's an interesting city as well. Chinatown - Petaling Street is a night market typical of Night bazaars in this part of Asia but they try to rip you off so bargain hard.
Batu Caves - just about 15-20mins by Cab outside of KL city is a Hindu Temple which is up in a cave..some 272 steps you have to take to get up there. Lots of monkeys so don't bring anything in a plastic - they assume plastics=food.
The malls are huge in Malaysia and you can get anything there pretty cheap as well as the high end stuff. I personally love Mid Valley Megamall.
All i eat in KL is fast food(because it's so much cheaper compared to Singapore) Street Food (pick one which is not beside the sewer or drain!!) Get maggi goreng,nasi goreng ikan bilis(dried anchovies fried rice)Satay(kinda like bbq meat on sticks) and lots of other yummies.
They do have Krispy Kreme donuts as well at Berjaya Times Square and great internet connection at Starbucks!
Have fun in KL.
♥Chrissy
Tarja -thanks for sharing!! Now I don't need to worry about that!
Anonymous -I don't think we'll go there this time. Langkawi and KL is enough I reckon.
Chrissy -thank you so much for your recommendations!! I really appreciate it!! So the nasi goreng is good in Malaysia??! I haven't had any good nasi- or migoreng since I went to Bali in 2002! Can't wait to enjoy some again, yum!
Hi there Jonna,
Thank God I check your this entry before you depart for my country.
All talk about taking malaria shot really makes me laugh. No offense ya to the other readers. I believe you are only going to Kuala Lumpur (where I reside) and Langkawi.
Kuala Lumpur - bustling city. new & old. pretty much like China I think. Just that we have more variety of races. ;) Food to look out for, you should try Jalan Alor for our hawker food though it is a little touristy there. But you get almost all the good food of Malaysia there.
Langkawi - about 45minute by flight from KL, or about 5 hours drive. I love it there. What you guys should do is, rent a car from the airport. It is pretty easy to drive around Langkawi. Beaches on the west side of Langkawi is beautiful. There are lots of seafood restaurants there. I find the few that is smack right in town taste better. I forgot the restaurant names though. But fret not, you just need to go look for the most crowded ones... :) That's usually how i pick eating place... hehehe. Oh yeah, as Langkawi is also a duty-free island, they have lots of alcohol & chocolates for sale. I would not buy them though cause they are mostly, how do you say, counterfeit ones. Even the chocolate dont taste good.
If you need any info or help while you are here, do drop me an email.
jonna!
im an avid reader to your blog and thrilled to hear that you'll be vacation-ing in my hometown.please feel free to reply me if u need any inquires abt KL or Langkawi,im more than happy to help! :)
Redbabe -thanks a lot darling for your great advices! I browsed you blog for a bit and now I am even more keen to visit Malaysia... wiiiii!! I didn't have time to email you but I think I'll be fine still. I just hope it won't rain over there all the time.
Btw, I also choose restos after how crowded they are... the more people = the better the food! It always works! :)
Oh, and duty free chocolate?! Damn! I am in trouble!
Lay-Jay -seeing that I am leaving in a couple of hours and I've printed some info (plus some of the comments and recommendations) I received on this blog to bring with me, I think I am going to be fine! Thanks for offering though! After all the reading about Malaysia I've been doing I have to say I am super keen to go! I just love visiting new places and Malaysia seems like a truly great place! Can't wait to have some laksa and some nasi gorent ;)
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